jnrno 


D11151115 


MEMORIAL 


OF 


E.    H.    ANGAMAE, 


RELATIVE  TO  THE 


NAVIGATION    OF    OLD   RIVER, 


TO  THE 


LEGISLATURE  OF  THE  STATE  OF  LOUISIANA. 


MARCH,       1861. 


BATON     ROUGE: 

M .     TAYLOR,     STATE     PRINTER 

1861. 


/  Af 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2011  with  funding  from 
Duke  University  Libraries 


http://www.archive.org/details/memorialofehanga01anga 


MEMORIAL. 


The  channel  through  which  the  Atchafalaya  and  the  Red  Rivers  com- 
municate with  the  Mississippi,  known  by  the  name  of  Old  River,  has  been 
filling  up  ever  since  1831. 

That  channel  was,  in  1831,  ninety  feet  deep;  it  is  now  about  seven  feet 
deep ;  and  last  summer,  there  was,  at  one  time,  only  fifteen  inches  of  water 
over  the  bar. 

The  forcible  consequence  of  that  constant  filling  up  is,  that  within  a  very 
short  time  (perhaps  this  very  year),  the  navigation  of  Old  River  will  be 
entirely  destroyed  at  low-water. 

Some  persons  say,  that  the  cry  of  the  impending  destruction  ,of  navigation 
in  Old  River  has  been  so  often  repeated,  for  the  last  fifteen  years,  without 
the  ominous  event  ever  taking  place  as  yet,  that  they  do  not  believe  such  a 
fact  will  ever  be  realized. 

These  persons  are  mistaken  ;  and  forget,  or  never  knew,  the  past  history 
of  that  navigation,  for  were  they  to  make  any  researches  about  it,  they 
would  find  out  that  said  navigation  would  have  been  destroyed  long  since, 
was  it  not  for  the  temporary  reliefs  applied  to  it  at  different  times  and  in 
different  ways,  either  by  appropriations  of  money  by  the  State,  or  by  the 
use  and  work  of  dredge  boats,  as  well  as  by  cut-offs  :  and  we  are  within  the 
truth  when  we  assert,  that  at  least  8X0,000  have  already  been  spent  on  it. 
In  1845  and  1846,  the  navigation  of  Old  River  was  on  the  eve  of  being 
entirely  suspended,  when  the  then  Board  of  Public  Works  proposed  and 
executed  the  Raccourci  Cut-off.  Governor  P.  0.  Hebert,  then  State  En- 
gineer, opposed  that  measure  very  strenuously,  and  stated  at  the  time,  that 
the  relief  so  afforded  to  the  navigation,  would  have  temporary  effect  only, 
and  that,  within  a  few  years,  the  Mississippi  River  would  resume  its  old 
level,  and  fill  up,  again,  the  gorges  of  Old  River.  (See  Reports  of  1846 
and  1847.) 

The  predictions  of  the  far-seeing  Engineer  have,  unluckily,  been  realized, 
and  now  the  prospects  of  losing  all  water  communication  between  the  two 
rivers,  are  more  threatening  than  ever:  for,  from  reliable  soundings  taken 


4 

and  communicated  to  us  very  recently  by  respectable  pilots,  we  are  informed 
that  the  channel  is,  at  this  very  moment,  filling  up  more  than  usual  in  high 
water,  and  that  if  the  Mississippi  and  Red  Rivers  happens  to  fall  at  the 
same  time  this  summer,  all  water  communication  between  them  will  be 
entirely  cut  off  this  year.     (A') 

(B")  This  opinion  is  not  ours  alone,  it  is  also  the  opinion  of  all  the 
practical  men,  pilots,  captains,  and  engineers,  who  have  examined  seriously 
into  the  matter. 

(A")  After  the  low-water  communication  is  destroyed,  the  filling  up  at 
high-water  will  go  on  at  an  increased  rate,  and  in  no  distant  period,  even 
the  high-water  communication,  between  the  two  rivers,  will  be  entirely  de- 
stroyed.    (B') 

The  longer  we  wait  before  taking  action  in  this  matter,  the  greater  the 
difficulty  of  restoring  the  navigation,  and  the  greater  also  will  be  the 
cost.  The  eventful  result  is  before  us;  is  it  not  wise  and  proper  to  apply 
the  remedy  in  time,  especially,  if  we  take  notice  that  the  works  necessary 
to  effect  the  desired  object  will  require,  at  least,  two  or  three  years  before 
they  can  be  carried  to  completion. 

Then  do  we  say  again,  something  must  be  done  in  the  premises,  and  the 
sooner  the  better  j  for  this  is  not  a  question  of  low-water  navigation  only, 
but  a  question  of  high-water  communication  also;  for,  as  we  have  said 
above,  the  communication  being  once  totally  interrupted  at  low-water,  the 
communication  during  high-water  will  soon  be  destroyed  also.  Such  has 
been  the  result  in  the  case  of  all  cut-offs,  and  there  is  not  the  least  reason 
why  that  should  be  otherwise  in  the  present  case.  On  the  contrary,  full 
and  positive  evidence  is  before  us  of  the  tendency  of  the  upper  channel  of 
Old  River  becoming  entirely  separated  from  the  Mississippi  in  the  same 
way  as  the  lower  channel  now  is. 

And  now  comes  this  question :  Which  is  the  best  and  cheapest  mode  of 
executing  the  works  that  will  prevent  the  threatening  destruction  of  water 
communication,  and  insure  the  needed  navigation  in  a  permanent  manner  ? 
Shall  the  State  undertake  the  works  herself,  or  shall  she  entrust  their  exe- 
cution to  a  company  who  will  do  it  out  of  their  oavu  funds  for  a  compen- 
sation ? 

A  very  important  question  of  expenditure  has  to  be  incurred  in  executing 
the  works,  and  because  Louisiana  is  not  the  only  party  interested  in  the 
matter.  Texas  and  Arkansas  are  equally  so;  for  out  of  the  500,000  bales 
of  cotton  shipped  annually  through  Old  River,  about  210,000  bales  are  the 
growth  of  our  State ;  the  balance  being  raised  and  shipped  by  the  States  of 
'Texas  and  Arkansas.  Then,  it  follows  that  Texas  and  Arkansas  ought  to 
vparti.cipate  in  the  expense,  and  here  springs  this  question  :  How  can  it  be 
done  ?  W&  have  no  power  to  tax  them  directly.  So  it  is.  But,  if  we 
£annoit  tax  ih&m  directly,  we  can  do  so  indirectly,  in   entrusting  the  under- 


taking  to  a  company  who  will  collect  their  revenues  from  the  very  freight 
benefitted  by  the  improvement,  and  who  will,  in  that  way,  obtain  the  object 
that  the  State  herself  could  not  accomplish,  that  is,  force  Texas  and  Arkan- 
sas to  pay  for  their  share  of  the  improvement. 

Some  parties  may,  at  first  sight,  object  to  the  establishing  of  tolls,  because 
it  looks  like  a  tax;  others  are  of  the  opinion,  that  this  being  a  measure  of 
public  improvement,  the  State  should  pay  herself  for  the  whole  expense, 
and  let  the  navigation  remain  free.  But  the  intended  toll  is  so  light  that, 
on  account  of  the  facilities  afforded  to  the  navigation  by  the  improvement, 
it  is  almost  certain  that  steamboats  will  assume  and  pay  themselves  the  light 
toll  to  be  levied  on  the  produce  carried  by  them,  without  charging  for  it, 
as  is  the  case  in  almost  every  similar  instance  j  and,  besides,  the  improve- 
ment in  navigation  thus  afforded,  will  do  away  with  the  high  rates  of 
freight  during  low-water. 

But  even  should  it  be  a. tax,  it  is  to  our  interest  to  submit  to  it,  for  we 
are  on  the  eve  of  losing  the  navigation  of  Old  River,  and  we  must  not,  we 
cannot,  allow  such  a  result  to  take  place  ;  and  hence  the  unanimous  opinion 
of  the  people,  that  something  must  be  done  in  the  premises,  and  done  soon, 
at  whatever  cost;  and,  if  we  judge  of  the  public  opinion  by  the  acts  of  the 
Legislature,  we  may  say  that  this  question  has  been  before  the  people  every 
year  since  1856. 

As  the  idea  of  charging  tolls  on  freight  might  be  construed  as  imposing 
an  extra  tax  on  cotton,  let  us  examine  the  expense  to  be  borne  by  the  inte- 
rested parishes,  in  case  of  the  works  being  executed  by  the  State,  and  in 
case  they  be  entrusted  to  and  performed  by  a  company. 

By  so  doing  we  will   arrive   at   a   perfect   understanding  of  the  question. 

In  case  the  State  is  to  execute  the  works,  she  must  raise  the  money 
necessary  to  carry  them  through,  and  she  has  no  other  means  to  raise  it 
except  by  way  of  taxation. 

Let  us  suppose,  for  the  sake  of  argument,  that  the  works  will  cost  $500,- 
000,  and  that  the  State  execute  the  works. 

Twenty-five  parishes  of  the  State  are,  more  or  less,  interested  in  this 
matter,  to-wit  :  Avoyelles,  Bienville,  Bossier,  Caddo,  Caldwell,  Catahoula, 
Claiborne,  DeSoto,  Franklin,  Jackson,  Morehouse,  Xatchitoches,  Ouachita, 
Rapides,  Sabine,  St.  Landry,  L'nion  and  Winn  for  the  whole  of  their  ship- 
ments, and  Concordia,  Lafayette,  Madison,  St.  Mary,  St.  Martin,  Tensas  and 
Vermillion  for  part  of  their  shipments. 

As  those  parishes  represent  a  little  over  two-fifths  of  the  whole  taxation 
of  the  State,  they  will  have  to  pay  towards  the  completion  of  the  works,  in 
the  shape  of  taxes,  the  sum  of  a.bout  two  fifths  of  the  entire  sum,  say  §200,- 
000  :  and  the  remaining  three-fifths,  or  *300,000,  will  have  to  be  paid  by 
the  other  parishes  of  the  State,  although  they  be  not  at  all  interested  in 
the  matter,  and  although  they  do  not  derive  the  least  benefit  from  the  works 
of  improvement. 


6 

Should,  on  the  contrary,  the  works  be  executed  by  a  company,  what  pro- 
portion of  the  expense  has  to  be  borne  by  the  aforesaid  twenty-five  parishes  ? 
Exactly  the  very  same  amount  as  in  the  case  of  the  State  performing  the 
works  herself,  for  the  reason  that  these  twenty  five  parishes  shipping- 
through  that  channel  only  two-fifths  of  the  whole  produce  passing  that  way, 
they  will  have  to  pay  two-fifths  only  of  the  expenditure,  or  $200,000;  here 
comes  the  difference  between  the  two  plans,  to-wit :  the  remaining  three- 
fifths,  or  $300,000,  instead  of  being  taken  from  the  pockets  of  the  balance 
of  our  own  citizens  who  have  no  direct  interest  in  the  matter,  and  who 
derive  no  benefit  at  all  from  the  expenditure,  will  be  collected  from  the 
people  of  Texas  and  Arkansas,  who  derive  the  full  benefit  of  the  improve- 
ment; thereby  saving  to  our  own  people  the  payment  of  a  tax  of  $300,000. 

From  the  above  it  appears,  that  in  having  the  j)roposed  improvement 
executed  by  a  company,  the  State  saves  three-fifths  of  the  total  expenditure, 
or  $300,000. 

From  the  above  it  appears  also  that  the  toll  proposed  to  be  levied  by  the 
company  will  not,  in  any  way,  augment  the  taxes  of  the  parishes  interested 
in  the  improvement,  since  they  will  pay  under  the  name  of  tolls  the  very 
same  amount  of  money  they  would  have  otherwise  to  pay  under  the  name 
and  shape  of  taxes. 

Then,  since  the  company  can  secure  the  navigation  for  two-fifths  of  the 
amount  of  money  that  it  would  cost  the  State,  if  the  State  was  to  under- 
take it,  and  since  those  of  our  parishes  who  will  be  taxed  in  the  shape  of 
tolls  for  the  payment  of  the  improvement,  will  be  made  to  pay  only  the 
same  amount  of  money  as  they  would  have  to  pay  if  the  State  was  to  exe- 
cute the  works,  the  balance  of  the  cost  of  the  improvement  being  collected 
by  the  company  from  people  foreign  to  us,  it  is  evident  that  the  works 
should  be  entrusted  to  a  company ;  in  so  doing  we  save  our  own  people 
from  paying  a  tax  which  we  set  on  strangers,  and  still  we  derive  the  full 
benefit  of  the  improvcmeat.  Besides,  as  we  have  stated  before,  there  is  a 
very  strong  probability  that  owing  to  the  greater  facilities  of  navigation 
brought  on  by  the  improvement  to  navigation,  and  owing  also  to  the  compe- 
tition between  steamboats  and  railroads,  steamboats  will  assume  and  pay  the 
toll  to  be  charged  on  freight  without  charging  for  it. 

It  is  a  matter  of  policy  admitted  by  all  nations  now  that  all  works  of  such 
a  nature  as  this,  are  more  :  cheaply  and  properly  carried  on  by  private  com- 
panies than  by  States,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  such  will  be  the  result 
in  this  case. 

Herewith  I  respectfully  submit  the  project  of  an  act  for  the  incorporation 
of  the  Old  River  Navigation  Company,  the  most  striking  feature  of  which 
is,  that  whenever  it  will  be  the  pleasure  of  our  Legislature  to  free  the 
Louisiana  grown  cotton  from  toll,  for  one  or  more  years,  they  are  empowered 
to  do  so  by  making  an  appropriation  sufficient  only  to  pay  to  the  company 


the  amount  of  tolls  that  would  accrue  to  them  for  one  or  more  years  from 
Louisiana  grown  cotton  j  in  other  words,  let  us  suppose  that  this  year's 
Louisiana  grown  cotton  crop  amounts  to  100,000  bales,  and  that  the  toll  be 
ten  cents  per  bale,  then  should  this  Legislature  pay  over  to  the  company 
$10,000,  the  Louisiana  cotton  would  be  allowed  to  pass  free  for  next  year; 
and  next  year  the  same  thing  might  be  done   again,  if  desired,  it  not,  not. 

Another  very  striking  feature  of  the  bill,  by  which  an}-  and  all  the  ob- 
jections that  might  be  entertained  against  it  ought  to  be  pacified  is,  that  it 
is  not  a  peremptory,  but  a  provisional  and  conditional  bill  only,  for  it  cannot 
take  effect  until  the  next  session  of  the  Legislature,  on  whom  will  devolve 
the  responsibility  of  approving,  amending,  or  repealing  it;  thereby  referring 
the  whole  matter  to  the  people,  who,  between  this  and  the  election  in  No- 
vember next,  will  have  an  opportunity  of  studying  the  matter,  and  of  in- 
structing their  Representatives  elected  by  them,  how  to  act  in  the  premises. 

As  the  originator  of  the  proposed  company,  and  as  a  citizen  deeply 
interested  in  the  navigation  of  Old  River,  I  do  most  respectfully  demand 
that  the  subject  of  this  communication  should  at  least  receive,  at  the  hands 
of  the  Legislature,  the  serious  attention  and  examination  it  deserves,  and 
that  some  action  of  some  kind  be  taken  in  the  premises,  for  wether  the  idea 
of  entrusting  the  works  to  a  company  be  eutertaiued  by  our  Legislature  or 
not,  the  Legislatures  of  Texas  and  Arkansas  should  be  consulted  in  order  to 
ascertain  whether  they  would  or  not  assist  in  some  shape,  in  accomplishing 
the  needed  improvement,  and  it  may  be  more  than  a  year  before  they  can 
be  made  to  act  in  the  matter.  Their  concurrence  in  the  expense  would  be 
so  much  saved  to  our  State,  and,  therefore,  I  beg  to  suggest  and  recommend 
the  propriety  of  passing  a  joint  resolution  authorizing  the  Governor  of  the 
State  to  appoint  a  Commissioner,  representing  the  State  of  Louisiana,  for  the 
purpose  of  waiting  on  the  Legislatures  of  Texas  and  Arkansas,  conferring 
with  them,  and  soliciting  their  co-operation  in  this  matter.  Said  Commis- 
sioner to  report  to  the  Legislature  at  its  next  session,  the  result  of  his 
mission.  Said  Commissioner  to  receive  no  pay  or  compensations  of  any 
kind  for  his  services,  but  to  be  entitled  to  mileage. 

E.  H.  ANGAMAB. 


Hollinger  Corp. 
PH8.5 


